Hongdu Aviation Industry Corporation is gearing up for mass production of the JL-10, for both Chinese and foreign customers.

One of the largest aerospace contracts in the world right now is T-X program, an effort to replac all of the United States' T-38 trainer jets—a.k.a. the aircraft used to train fighter pilots. When counting the potential buys on the foreign export market, some 1,000 new jets are planned for this program.

But the T-X won't be alone. China is playing in the same sandbox with its L-15 (JL-10 in People's Liberation Army Air Force service), an advanced training aircraft undergoing mass production at the Hongdu Aviation Industry Corporation in Nanchang. With this plane, China is quickly building up a supersonic jet trainer force, as well opening up its own export market.

The L-15/JL-10 is a lead-in fighter trainer (LIFT), which is what training pilots transition to after starting off on subsonic propeller and jet aircraft. This means it is the final plane that Chinese fighter pilots will fly before taking flight in frontline fighters like the J-10, J-11, and stealthy J-20.

The planes have a maximum takeoff weight of 9.5 tons and uses a three-axis fly-by wire system that helps simulate the flight parameters of most modern fighters. The Ukrainian Ivchencko AI-222K-25F turbofan engines on its supersonic JL-10 version pushes it to a speed of Mach 1.4. It has tandem seating for two people; the student pilot in the front seat, and the instructor in the back. The advanced avionics on the JL-10 will also help student pilots prepare for the complex digital cockpits on modern Chinese fighters, especially the J-20.